Window Boards

[Russdl]

I think I’d make the shelf, place it in position with some packers underneath, 3mm or so, put a stop bead in flush with the top of the shelf. Remove the shelf, get the plastering/painting done and then put gobs of glue down and refit the shelf. 

Edited March 26, 2021 by Russdl

[Jenni]

Thanks everyone. I'll post pics when it's sorted. (going to be a couple of months I reckon) 

[TonyT]

I think window cills  need an apron under the cill, I think it finishes it off 

Edited March 29, 2021 by TonyT

[Jenni]

So it turns out that oak faced ply is pretty hard to come by. MDF is more available and being recommended to me by various merchants. 

 

Does anyone have any experience of iron-on edging, is it up to the job? 

[jack]

19 minutes ago, Jenni said:

So it turns out that oak faced ply is pretty hard to come by. MDF is more available and being recommended to me by various merchants. 

 

Does anyone have any experience of iron-on edging, is it up to the job? 

 

What look are you trying to achieve? I assumed from your mention of ply that you wanted visible ply on the cut edge - is that not the case? 

 

More generally, oak faced ply is certainly available (eg, https://www.atlantictimber.co.uk/crown-cut-oak-veneered-birch-plywood-2440mm-x-1220mm-8-x-4.html), albeit probably not from places like builders' merchants. Probably you'd need to order online and get it delivered unless you live near a suitable supplier.

 

If you want a veneered edge, many of these suppliers will cut and professionally edge-band veneered MDF to order. Unless you have a particular interest in doing this yourself, I'd be tempted to just give a suitable supplier a cut and veneer list and have them make it all up as cut strips for you. All you need to do onsite is cut to length and install.

[Jenni]

In terms of look I'm aiming for, I was drawn to what ProDave has achieved in regards to low profile overhang. 

I definitely want oak, I do like the look of ply edge. MDF with iron on edge would be easier / cheaper to source, could also be flush to the wall, but I worry the edge tape might look tatty after a couple of years. 

I don't think having it professionally edged is a go-er, I need to cut the board into 6 various sized pieces. 

[tanneja]

On 23/03/2021 at 08:25, jack said:

 

 

I can't answer your questions directly, but I've recently been working with oak-faced ply to make furniture.

 

A couple of points:

- you want to make sure the ply edge is of good enough quality to be visible. I suspect most oak-faced plywood will be on birch plywood, but check before buying (tell them what you're planning to do with it)

- you'll need a way a making a decent cut, as the plywood surface splinters easily. I ended up buying a decent rail/plunge saw, and it's been brilliant. The cut edge doesn't even need sanding, although you need to take the sharp edges off slightly.

- I'm using 19mm plywood and I think that'd be a good thickness for this sort of application. Depends on what level of "chunk" you're after, visually. You'll need a fair bit of support if you make shelves out of this thickness and want them to handle much weight (eg, books) without bending.

Hi Jack, did you make 19mm ply window boards yourself, and if yes, do you have finished pictures?

 

Edit, sorry read your first part of your message.  if you feel happy to share any of your furniture creations, I would be very grateful to see the overall style you have achieved, I offer my apologies if it is an invasive request.  Trying to negotiate 19mm oak faced ply window reveals (all the way around, with the ply layers on show) to other half, any situational pictures of the material may be helpful.

Edited April 30, 2021 by tanneja

[jack]

19 hours ago, tanneja said:

Edit, sorry read your first part of your message.  if you feel happy to share any of your furniture creations, I would be very grateful to see the overall style you have achieved, I offer my apologies if it is an invasive request.  Trying to negotiate 19mm oak faced ply window reveals (all the way around, with the ply layers on show) to other half, any situational pictures of the material may be helpful.

 

I'll grab a photo later today.

[jack]

On 30/04/2021 at 15:44, tanneja said:

Hi Jack, did you make 19mm ply window boards yourself, and if yes, do you have finished pictures?

 

Edit, sorry read your first part of your message.  if you feel happy to share any of your furniture creations, I would be very grateful to see the overall style you have achieved, I offer my apologies if it is an invasive request.  Trying to negotiate 19mm oak faced ply window reveals (all the way around, with the ply layers on show) to other half, any situational pictures of the material may be helpful.

 

Hi again

 

Here's what I did.

 

 

 

(Ignore the dust and threads - I've just finished refitting the carpet)

 

I have to say that even though I got oak faced birch plywood that was specifically stated as being suitable for use with exposed edges, there's a lot of uneven colouring in the ply layers that I wasn't expecting. I'm sure some of it was me getting used to the tracksaw I bought to do the project (darkening due to heat) but I don't think that explains it all 

 

The oak veneer looked okay though. It comes in an A side and B side - the B side definitely didn't come up as nicely in a few areas but I was mostly able to position that out of sight.

 

 

[tanneja]

@jack your workmanship is superb! I see what you mean about the exposed edge unevenness, presumably that is down to the layers and not you.  For what it is worth, to me it doesn't detract from the finish.

[jack]

43 minutes ago, tanneja said:

@jack your workmanship is superb! 

 

I thought I'd mentioned it above, but it appears not (maybe I mentioned it on another thread). For the avoidance of any doubt, I didn't make the drawers, they're Ikea! I just boxed them in.

 

One day when I have more time (and experience!), I'll replace the innards with proper drawers. The Ikea ones aren't very deep, aren't full extension, and generally just feel unpleasant to use.

[tanneja]

@jack I was referring to your corner detailing, everything looks really sharp. To the layman its impressively clean with no visible pin holes etc.  Thank you again for sharing.

[jack]

1 hour ago, tanneja said:

@jack I was referring to your corner detailing, everything looks really sharp. To the layman its impressively clean with no visible pin holes etc.  Thank you again for sharing.

 

The track saw really helped with this. I can't recommend them highly enough for anyone planning to make furniture (or anything else needing clean, sharp cuts) from sheet materials.

[Russdl]

+1 to what @jack says. 
 

Our track saw has proved invaluable and helped me make silk purses out of sows ears. 

[tanneja]

Which brand / models did each of you go for?  I am guessing I could save money with corded if need be, and presumably it is the blade quality that largely dictates the cut?

[Russdl]

@tanneja I went for the DeWalt, corded, can’t remember the exact model.
 

Absolutely brilliant, creates factory style cut edges on pretty much anything you cut, and can be mm perfect, but that’s up to the user. So far I’ve only used DeWalt blades. 

[jack]

1 hour ago, tanneja said:

Which brand / models did each of you go for?  I am guessing I could save money with corded if need be, and presumably it is the blade quality that largely dictates the cut?

 

I looked at this long and hard. Peter Millard's videos on YouTube are excellent. Along with some good "how-to" videos, there are also various comparisons between cheaper and more expensive products.

 

In the end, I went with the Bosch GKT 55, which is made by Mafell (a German manufacturer who themselves make a much more expensive plunge saw under their own brand). It uses the same track as the Mafell. Very happy with its performance, although there are pros and cons to all the different units.

 

Also look into getting a rail square and parallel guides, such as those available from Bench Dogs. If you can cut straight using the tracks, and at 90 degrees using the square, you've solved 95% of the cutting problems you'll face when making simple articles.

[ToughButterCup]

17 minutes ago, jack said:

I looked at this long and hard....

 

Looks like you and I have been studying his offerings for a while. He really is excellent: his production values are high too. He knows how to tell a visual story, and his scripting is tight.

I bought a Festool MFT, rail and square, a few bench dogs and a Festool plunge saw.  Not long now before I do nothing but make fitted furniture for all our nooks and crannies.

Can't wait.

Edited May 4, 2021 by ToughButterCup

[jack]

6 minutes ago, ToughButterCup said:

Looks like you and I have been studying his offerings for a while. He really is excellent: his production values are high too. He knows how to tell a visual story, and his scripting is tight.

 

Couldn't agree more. He also thinks outside the box. So many woodworkers are obsessed with table saws. I don't really have the space, and frankly, they're such relatively dangerous tools that the ability to get comparable (and in some cases better) cuts more safely is very appealing. There are obviously somethings table saws can do that plunge saws can't do (or make it harder to do), but for the moment, I'm happy with the plunge saw route. 

 

5 minutes ago, ToughButterCup said:

I bought a Festool MFT, rail and square, a few bench dogs and a Festool plunge saw. 

 

You won't go wrong with that set up, for sure.

 

[patp]

We are now at the stage to first fix carpentry. As OP we have oak windows and have read this thread with great interest. Did it all work out satisfactorily?

[eandg]

I'm currently looking at window board options and oak veneered plywood is on the list - thinking of buying full sheets and cutting to size, including for some window seats. Thoughts? And best suppliers?